1. Ohio State: Don’t let the NCAA mess cloud your judgment, they are clearly the best team in the Big Ten. Ohio State is arguably the only team in the Big Ten that can have 5 key players and their head coach suspended for the first 5 games of the season and come out of it unscathed. Ohio State has 2nd teamers that would start at most Big Ten schools. The Buckeyes will be just fine against the Big 10 this fall. Now, the NCAA is another story, they might beat the stuffing out of the Buckeyes
2. Penn State: Rob Bolden and Silas Redd are poised for big seasons. Let’s not forget that the Nittany Lions are two years removed from an elite recruiting class that could blossom this year. The two aforementioned players were a part of said recruiting class. Penn State has a recent history of following up a disappointing season with a very good one. Look for the Nitts to bounce back this year.
3. Nebraska: I feel somewhat queasy putting the Cornhuskers this high. Taylor Martinez looked like a Heisman Trophy winner the first half of the year and like William Hung in shoulder pads the second half. He was berated on national TV by his head coach in College Station, TX on November 21st and the season spiraled downhill from there. The D will be very good to great once again, but the key to success is no doubt with Martinez and his health.
4. Iowa: The Hawkeyes absolutely thrive when little is expected of them. With Marcus Coker, James Vandenberg, C.J. Fiedorowicz, Keenan Davis, and a stout offensive line the Hawkeyes will boast one of the top offenses in the conference. The D has to replace a lot with the departures of Christian Ballard, Tyler Sash, and Adrian Clayborn, but the crafty Norm Parker always seems to plug in new starts somewhere.
5. Wisconsin: The Badgers will have a big, strong offensive line, with great depth at running back. Ho hum, what else is new…They will be opportunistic defensively and return playmaking linebacker Chris Borland from a shoulder injury. Wisconsin does need to replace the very serviceable Scott Tolzein, but the Badgers always seem to find scrappy quarterbacks that manage to make just enough plays to keep opposing defenses honest.
6. Michigan State: Sparty was absolutely whacked by Alabama in the Capital One Bowl, but I can’t say that came as a surprise. I said before that game the Michigan State was the worst 11-1 team in the history of the Big Ten conference. The Spartans have struggled in big games under Dantonio often getting blown out. They have dominated their arch-rival Michigan lately, but who hasn’t. The Spartans return arguably the best skill position talent offensively that the Big Ten has to offer, but their defense will once again leave something to be desired. William Gholston will need to be a monster to prevent a horrendous secondary from getting torched.
7. Michigan: Brady Hoke and Greg Mattison have their work cut out for them on the defensive side of the ball, as the Wolverines are small and there is a lack of depth throughout, especially in the secondary. Under center or out of the gun Denard Robinson will continue to make plays and gain yards, but the Wolverines won’t see their “breakthrough year” until 2012 or 2013. First and foremost the Wolverines need to become more physical and tough, and that won’t come overnight. Hoke will do everything in his power to rebuild the pride at Michigan, but it will take a while.
8. Northwestern: The Cats have a great young coach in Pat Fitzgerald and an elite signal caller in Dan Persa in a dangerous spread offense. The Cats will live and die with the health of Dan Persa. If Persa can stay healthy they will win 7-9 games, if he doesn’t they will miss a bowl game. It’s as simple as that…
9. Illinois: The Illini have struggled putting together back to back winning seasons recently, in fact that haven’t done so since 90-91. Ouch! How is that even possible in the era of the non-conference cupcakes?! Nathan Scheelhaase will win a couple of games with his legs and talent, but he needs help and the Illini are thin at receiver and lose workhorse tailback Mikel Leshoure. Jason Ford is a nice complimentary piece, but he needs to stay out of trouble with the law (he was arrested on suspicion of driving with a suspended license on April 26th). The Illini also need to replace All Big Ten tackle and first round draft choice Corey Liuget and linebacker Martez Wilson defensively. Those are two gaping holes to fill.
10. Minnesota: If you ask Minnesota Head Coach Jerry Kill his team is slow, not very deep, unskilled, undisciplined, lazy, not very attractive…well you get the point. Kill has made no secret out of the fact that his team reported to Spring practice out of shape and he put them through hell in 15 practices in Minneapolis. Kill is happy with the progress his team made, but knows it has a long way to go to change the culture of a program that endured 3 ½ forgetful seasons under former head honcho Tim Brewster. Kill has a potential game breaker in quarterback MarQueis Gray, but Gray needs to improve his accuracy as a pocket passer to be truly special. Minnesota also lacks depth across the board. However, Jerry Kill is one heck of a coach and if anyone can turn this program around Kill can. It just won’t be this year.
11. Purdue: Danny Hope is on life support in West Lafayette, but you have to feel for Hope. He had little to no depth last year and it showed when he lost his #1 QB, RB, and WR to injury. Hope needs to upgrade his recruiting to help with injuries, but that is tough to do when you are considered a lower echelon Big Ten program in the middle of Indiana. The Boilermakers need everything to go right this year to have even an outside shot at a bowl game.
12. Indiana: The Hoosiers hired an offensive minded coach with zero college head coaching experience. Congratulations you just hired the man you just fired. Actually I take that back former coach Bill Lynch was a head coach, Wilson is a 50 year old career coordinator. Congrats once again are in order to the school that is not only the third best program in the state of Indiana in football, but is becoming so in basketball thanks to Butler and Purdue. Well at least they have The Rock. Oh not The Rock, but the rock? Never mind then…
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